


Thy Divining Heart

by Greenlady, Jen Hall (Greenlady)



Series: All Thy Heart [17]
Category: Starsky & Hutch
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-04-25
Packaged: 2019-12-27 04:33:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18296921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Greenlady/pseuds/Greenlady, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Greenlady/pseuds/Jen%20Hall
Summary: This was one of the last things I wrote before dropping out of Starsky & Hutch fandom back around 2005 or so.  Last month I found it on Live Journal, and started editing it, because it does carry the story on and clear up a few threads left hanging.  The line breaks were pretty messy, and that took a lot of work to fix, which is why I haven't posted it until now.I don't know whether I'll continue the story or not.  I do still have a lot to write in my current story, and it's not like Starsky and Hutch fandom in general gives a damn.  S&H fandom didn't care then, and it hasn't changed over the years.  But I like to finish things I start, when it's possible, so we'll see.  In the meantime....





	Thy Divining Heart

**Author's Note:**

> This was one of the last things I wrote before dropping out of Starsky & Hutch fandom back around 2005 or so. Last month I found it on Live Journal, and started editing it, because it does carry the story on and clear up a few threads left hanging. The line breaks were pretty messy, and that took a lot of work to fix, which is why I haven't posted it until now. 
> 
> I don't know whether I'll continue the story or not. I do still have a lot to write in my current story, and it's not like Starsky and Hutch fandom in general gives a damn. S&H fandom didn't care then, and it hasn't changed over the years. But I like to finish things I start, when it's possible, so we'll see. In the meantime....

 

Let not thy divining heart

Forethinke me any ill,

Destiny may take thy part,

And may thy fears fulfill;

But thinke that wee

Are but turn'd aside to sleepe;

They who one another keepe

Alive, ne'er parted bee.

 

John Donne, Song, 1633

 

************************************************

 

'Mail!' said Starsky. He handed Hutch several letters, and then placed two large, official looking envelopes beside Judith's plate. He sat down to read his own mail. Bills, mostly.

Judy opened one of her envelopes, and smiled. 'Well, I hope you don't mind me staying here a little longer?' she asked. 'This is from my old accounting firm. They've accepted my official resignation. So, I'm officially unemployed.'

'Hah. I think we can put up with your company,' said Hutch. 'Whady'a think, Starsky?'

'Oh, sure. We're gettin' along okay. Long as you're happy?'

'Well, I'm not going to live off you guys,' said Judy. 'I'm looking at office space downtown.'

'Downtown?' said Starsky, with exaggerated surprise. 'There's a downtown around here?'

'Downvillage, maybe,' said Hutch, blandly. 'You thinking of opening your own accounting firm here, Jude?'

'Why not? Look at all the artists and musicians and writers. Some of the younger ones especially could use my services, and what I want to do, is appeal to them. To be accessible. Interesting. I was looking at a storefront on the main street yesterday, not far from the police station, actually. I was picturing it, nicely decorated, filled with plants and examples of the local artists work.'

'Doesn't sound much like my idea of an accounting office,' Starsky noted.

Judy beamed at him. 'Exactly!' she said. 'That's just what I want. Something that's not the ordinary idea of an accounting office. And I'm thinking about looking for a lawyer to go in with me. Someone who specializes in entertainment law, maybe? Just a thought.'

'Hold that thought,' said Hutch. He smiled, and leaned over to kiss Starsky, lightly. 'I'm not one of you lucky, lazy layabouts,' he added. 'Have to get to work.

'Lazy layabouts?' Starsky spluttered. 'Judy and me are offended, aren't we, Judy?'

'I'm staying out of this,' said Judy, and disappeared behind the morning paper.

Starsky followed Hutch out the door of the Mission. It gave him a good view of Hutch's long legs in action -- and of the magnificent ass that supported them.

'What?' asked Hutch, turning in the doorway.

'What what?' asked Starsky.

Hutch smiled, again. He smiled more often these days, thought Starsky, as he reached up to smooth the deep crease between Hutch's eyes.

'I'm gonna drive up to LA today,' said Starsky. 'Got some business with the show. And I wanna see Huggy. You got a message for him?'

'Yeah. Tell him he should open a bar here in Port Justine. Liven the place up. He can stay with us until he gets settled.'

'I'll do that,' said Starsky. 'But I'll put on my bullet-proof asbestos vest first. We opening a hotel, by the way?'

'Now that's an idea. We have enough room.'

'Go!' said Starsky. 'Get outta here. I'll see you later. Got a lot to do, so if I'm not home for dinner, don't worry. I'm not fooling around on you.'

'I'm not worried,' said Hutch. 'Where would you get the energy?'

Starsky smiled, a slow, lazy smile.

'Never mind,' said Hutch, as he pulled Starsky in for a long kiss.

That was one of the perks of living out here in the middle of nowhere, thought Starsky, happily. He could kiss Hutch, outside in broad daylight, and no one cared.

Of course, that was because there was on one to see. Considering that, he decided to cop a feel at the same time.

*****************************

 

'So, Starsky, my man. You still alive?'

'Yeah, Hugs. Imagine that.'

'Don't want to imagine that, Starsky. It's too painful to imagine  
that. How you holding up? And what's so funny?'

'Nothin'. I'm holding up just fine, Huggy. Hutch says to tell you to move to Port Justine with us. We've got lots of room.'

'What! Now I know you guys have lost your minds.'

'You can open a bar.'

'And drink all the liquid stock. And then I'll open a vein. You heard anything from Dobey, yet?'

'No. Not a word. Why?'

'I went to see him. Kicked his ass good. Told him there's nothing uglier than a Black bigot. Those white hoods just don't suit us. We should leave them to the folks who designed them.'

'What'd he have to say to that?'

'He told me I got it all wrong. He's not a bigot. That's what they all say, I told him.'

'Don't worry about it, Huggy. I'm gonna go talk to him myself. Think about opening that bar, though. Hutch has his heart set on it.'

'I'll think about it,' said Huggy. 'In my nightmares, tonight, for sure.'

******************************

'Hey, Cap. Nice day, huh?'

Captain Dobey turned and looked at Starsky, who was leaning casually against the side of the Torino. A quick smile lightened his face for a moment, then disappeared.

'Starsky,' he acknowledged.

Starsky opened the car door. 'Come on,' he said. 'Get in.'

'Look, son. I have to get home,' Dobey protested.

'Get in, Cap. We gotta talk.'

'Talk? About what?'

'You know about what.'

'Then forget it,' said Dobey, and started for his car.

'Coward!' said Starsky. 'Yeah, that's right, you're a coward. And a liar, too. You won't even talk to me, and you said you loved us like your sons. Is this the way you'd treat your sons?' He laughed, a little bitterly. 'Yeah. Maybe it is,' he added.

Dobey turned back. 'I don't see the point in talking,' he said. 'I don't understand you. Not any more.'

'How can you understand, if you won't even try,' said Starsky. 'You want to try? Then get in the car.'

They drove to a nearby park, and Starsky pulled over in a quiet spot. He turned in his seat to look at Dobey.

'Hutch likes his new job,' he said. 'We're settling in. Port Justine is a quiet town, most of the time. The people there seem to like us, so far. No one has spray painted Faggots Go Home on our garage door yet. Though it's probably just a matter of time. You can find bigots anywhere. Sometimes where you least expect to find them.'

'I am not a bigot,' Dobey stated.

'I know,' said Starsky. 'Some of your best friends are gay.'

'You're not gay!' said Dobey. 'I know that, and you know that, and Hutch knows that. You're going against your own natures, both of you.'

'Really? Doesn't feel that way to me,' said Starsky. 'It feels like coming home, and finding my best friend waiting there.'

'Yes!' said Dobey. 'Your best friend. You're friends, not lovers. You've been friends for years, and dated women the whole time. You trying to tell me that was just a cover?'

'No,' said Starsky.

'You trying to tell me you've been gay all along, and no one knew it?'

'No,' said Starsky.

'Then what are you trying to tell me?' asked Dobey.

'Trying to tell you,' said Starsky, slowly. 'That's a good description of this conversation. Fits the conversations I've been having with my mother pretty good, too. Trying to tell you. You both keep asking me all this stuff, and won't listen to a fucking word I say… Never mind, Dobey. I'll talk to you any way I like, now. You're not my boss any longer. So quit trying to find some fucking theory or other to explain us away, and just listen. Cause I'm tired of trying to tell you things, and not getting the chance. Got that?'

'Yeah,' said Dobey. Snarled, rather. 'Got that.'

'Good,' said Starsky. 'That's a good start. Listen. I love Hutch. I always loved Hutch. I always will love Hutch. What more do you need to know? Hutch and me… yes, we dated women. Lots of women. Then, as time went on, we started to realize. We'd never love women the way we loved each other, no matter how many of them we dated. Does that make us gay? Maybe it does. But why does it matter? Why do you have to stick a label on us -- to make us safe? So you can be sure the same thing won't happen to you? You scared that if it can happen to me and Hutch, it can happen to anyone, and next week it can happen to you, and you'll end up in bed with some old friend of the male variety? Look. I understand the feeling. The need to be safe. To make sure it can't happen to you. I didn't want to love Hutch this way, myself. I knew what would happen. How people would look at us, and despise us. How they would see what we did together as something ugly. So I tried to keep us safe. I labelled people to keep them as far away from us as possible, so they couldn't possibly be like us, and we'd be safe. But Hutch taught me better. He's a better person inside than I am. He deserves better from you, than being labelled and hated. So, if you want to label someone, label me. Hate me. Shut me out. But don't shut Hutch out. I think it's hurting him really bad, and I can't stand to see him hurting. Okay?'

Starsky stopped for breath. He realized he was shaking a little, and his eyes were full of tears. He turned to look out the car window, and pounded on the dashboard. The pain in his hands brought him back to himself, a little. He dared to look at Dobey.

Dobey was staring at him, as if he'd grown two heads. Starsky sighed. 'Well,' he said. 'I tried.' He turned the key in the ignition, to start the car.

One of Dobey's big, meaty hands settled on his own. 'Starsky,' he said. 'I'm sorry. I didn't… I didn't mean to… I didn't realize. I thought. I don't know what I thought. That you got confused and turned around somehow, and your friends needed to bring you to your senses. I thought you just had to listen to reason, and you'd see how wrong you were.'

'No,' said Starsky. 'I'm not wrong. We're not wrong. We're right.'

Dobey was silent for a long moment, his hand resting on Starsky's. 'I'm sorry,' he said again. 'It was wrong of me to judge you like that. I always thought I wasn't capable of such a thing, which shows how wrong we all can be. And I was wrong.'

'I was wrong, too,' said Starsky. 'You're not a coward.' He brushed at his eyes, quickly. 'I should start driving, or we'll end up crying on each other's shoulders, and people will be talking about us next.'

'Yeah,' said Dobey.

'Look, Dobey. You should go see Hutch, okay? See how good he looks. The place suits him. The job suits him. I think I suit him. You could be a big help to him -- big city police captain and all that. Contacts, you know?'

'I know,' said Dobey, with a grin. 'I have a few days vacation coming up. I'll drive up there. Never been to Port Justine.'

'It's… it's a nice place,' said Starsky.

'Yeah?' said Dobey.

'Yeah,' said Starsky.

'Hate it that much, do you?' asked Dobey.

'Nah,' said Starsky. 'Don't hate it. Just have to drive up to LA, as often as possible. I'll survive.'

'You really are in love with him, aren't you.'

'That's what I've been trying to tell you.'

 

****************

 

The new Port Justine Police Department was a hive of activity. Well, compared to the rest of Port Justine it was, thought Hutch.

As small towns went, Port Justine was a stellar community. It was peaceful without being stuffy, for the most part. The predominance of musicians and artists helped. But what about those who weren't musicians and artists? What did they do with their spare time? That was one of the problems facing the town. The young people were bored. Bored young people get involved with crime as a way to let off steam.

I'm here as the Chief of Police, not as a social worker, he reminded himself. And yet, it was likely that most of Port Justine's problems with crime were due to social issues that had so far gone unidentified. There was little real poverty here, that he could see. There were no street people. No starvation wages. No slums. No deep divisions between the rich and the poor. No one had to steal to eat, in other words.

Or, so went the accepted wisdom, at any rate.

It occurred to Hutch that they had been called to this town because they were outsiders, who didn't necessarily accept the accepted wisdom. There was no such thing as Heaven on Earth, and he knew that. There were problems in this Heaven, some of them the same problems they had faced in LA. But the problems came in a smaller package, and maybe they could do something about them, armed as they were with so many years of brutal experience.

Starsky was... wait. Starsky was no longer his partner. He was driving back to LA to deal with his own life. For a moment Hutch felt lost, and he leaned his arm against the wall of his new office. 

'Hutch? You okay?'

Hutch turned to meet Spike's concerned eyes. 'Yeah. I'm fine,' he said.

'If you say so,' said Spike.

'I say so. I was just thinking, that's all.'

'Ah. Thinking. Starsky says you do too much of that.'

'Starsky's a pain sometimes,' said Hutch, blandly.

'Yeah. I can see that,' said Spike, as Hutch sat down at his new desk, rather carefully.

'You behave,' said Hutch, shaking his finger at Spike. 'Have some respect for your commanding officer.'

'That's just it, see. I don't have no respect for commanding officers, and I never did. Never will. Got a lot of respect for you as a person, though. So, I might not make a good cop in the tradition to which you are accustomed. But you can count on me in a fire fight.'

'Okay. Good enough for me. Listen. What you just said about the police traditions to which I am accustomed, was germane. Starsky and I became cops because we wanted to help people. But I always felt we never did enough.'

'Of course not,' said Spike. 'How could you? You were two guys in that huge city. And how much did the LAPD support you?'

'Not much,' Hutch admitted. 'We were fighting a losing battle the whole time. I suppose we helped a few people here and there.'

'But they got lost in the shuffle,' said Spike. 'You wouldn't hardly notice them, among the preponderance of people who sank beneath the waves.'

'Look around you,' Hutch suggested. 'This is a small town. The mayor invited us here. He supports us. Maybe we.... maybe I could do some good here. Besides just catch the bad guys, I mean.'

Spike pulled up a spare chair, and leaned his elbows on Hutch's desk. 'You mean you and Starsky, don't you?' he asked. 'You want Starsky's help, not just his presence in your bed.'

'Yes,' Hutch admitted. 'But he has his own life.'

'He'd be thrilled if you asked him for help, and you're an idiot if you don't know it.'

'Oh, don't I know it. But I don't want... Starsky has done so much for me already. He moved here for me, remember?'

'Yeah. He did. And you're worried about him being bored. Listen, Hutch. Give him something to do here, besides being your boyfriend. What do you have in mind for this poor, unsuspecting village, anyway?'

'This poor unsuspecting village grew up as an artist's town. But not everyone here is an artist. What's in it for them?'

'Not much.'

'Exactly. I'm not suggesting that's the only problem. I'm not suggesting I can magically solve even this one problem. But I can suggest... Okay. For a start. There is no college nearby. If anyone wants an education beyond High School, they have to go to LA, or San Diego, or someplace like that. Makes no sense.'

'Probably they've never considered the idea,' Spike pointed out. 'Just accept it as inevitable. Most people can afford to send their kids to college out of state.'

'Yeah. That's it,' said Hutch. 'The way things are, are the way they've always been. We can change some of that, because we have a different perspective, as outsiders. The town is already changing around these people, and they have to adapt. I think they realize that. I don't think they'll fight me on it, much. They're not intolerant. Just maybe set in their ways.'

'I doubt they'll like you for pointing that out,' said Spike. 'You show up out of the blue, from the big city, and start criticizing their whole way of life?'

'No. So that's not what I'm going to do. I'm going to introduce the changes one idea at a time. And another thing....'

'Yes?' asked Spike, with a grin.

'Judy wants to open an accounting office, and make it friendly and welcoming to people. It made me think. Police stations don't have to look like jail cells, do they? This is a small town. There's no need for this place to look like a lockup in downtown LA.'

'You know, Hutch, you really are gay,' said Spike. 'How'd you hide it all these years?'

Spike was evil, thought Hutch. But he had a point. He tried to imagine suggesting that the LAPD decorate its offices to look friendlier and more welcoming. The reaction would make his own reaction to Merle's desecration of his LTD seem tame by comparison. But of course he wasn't suggesting they make the place look... frilly, or anything. Just a few plants, some pictures on the wall, maybe.... 

'Hey! What're you doin' there, kid?'

Sam Wright, one of the Deputies from the old Sheriff's department, had been sitting at the front desk. He jumped up and ran out the front door. Hutch followed him in time to see him tackle someone running down the street. Sam hauled the kid to his feet and shook him. 'Todd Blake! Just what in tarnation do you think you're doing?'

'Nothing!' said the kid. 'I wasn't doing nothing.'

Sam dragged the kid over to Hutch's Mercedes, which was parked on the street outside. 'You call this nothing?' asked Sam. 'What do they teach you in school these days? How to slash tires, instead of how to speak proper English? Look, Chief! I'm real sorry about that. Wish I'd caught him earlier.'

'Not your fault, Sam,' said Hutch. His tires were indeed slashed, and rapidly deflating. Hutch walked around the car. On the street side, in bright red letters, was the message: Kill All Fags.

*******************

 

'Chief Hutchinson, I cannot begin to tell you how sorry we are about this. And how ashamed.'

Martha Blake was a kind, motherly-looking woman. Her face was streaked with tears. Hutch put his arm around her, and led her to a chair in his office. 'Here, have a seat,' he said. 'This isn't the way I'd have liked to invite you into my new office,' he added.

'This isn't the way I wanted to visit you,' she said.

They'd met once, briefly, the day of the town meeting at City Hall. He'd liked her on sight, but had been too busy since then for socializing.

'I agree with Martha,' said Mayor Blake. 'We're both ashamed. We didn't bring him up to commit hate crimes, I assure you. But I suppose we spoiled him, and now he thinks he can do whatever he wants and there will be no consequences. Well, young man, there will be consequences. Same as if anyone else in this town committed a hate crime.' Mayor Blake turned to glare at his son, who sat sprawled in a chair against the wall, Sam Wright standing guard beside him.

'Hate crime? What hate crime?' asked Todd Blake, with a sneer.

'You don't consider writing 'Kill All Fags' to be a hate crime?' asked the mayor.

'No. I don't. Fags deserve to die,' said his son.

'Who told you that, Todd?' asked his mother. 'We didn't teach you that.'

'No. Of course not,' said Todd. 'You're friends with that fairy, Benjie Sparks, and that dyke, Crissie. Dad hires a fairy to be the Police Chief. How can a fairy be a cop?'

'I've been one all my life,' said Hutch, calmly.

'What?' asked Todd. 'A cop or a fairy?'

'Both,' said Hutch. 'Why does that bother you so much?'

'Why does that bother you? Why does that bother you?' mocked Todd. 'God you homos are wimps. You make me sick.'

'Todd!' his father roared. 'Shut up and stop shaming your mother and me. I don't know what's the matter with you lately.'

'No?' asked his son, slinking down lower in his chair. 'You don't know anything about me. You don't know anything about anything.'

'He's an adolescent,' Martha Blake explained. 'He thinks he knows it all.'

Todd laughed. 'I know more than you,' he said.

'About what?' asked Mayor Blake.

'About what's real and important. Who the important people are.'

'Ah yes. The important people who put you up to this? You did it on a dare, didn't you?'

'What of it?'

'You passed some kind of test, and it makes you a real man now? Is that it?'

'Yeah,' said Todd. 'That's it.'

'Good,' said the mayor. 'If you're a real man, you can take your punishment like one. Go ahead, Sam. Lock him up!'

'Dad!'

'Oh, no. Don't start whining to me. You got yourself into this. I think the circuit judge comes by next week sometime, doesn't he, Sam?'

'I think so, Mayor,' said Sam with a grin. 'Or the week after.'

'Well then, Todd. See you at your trial.'

'Trial? Trial for what?' whined Todd.

'For a 594,' Hutch spoke up in even tones. 'Vandalism. Graffiti. You were seen committing the act by an officer of the law, and subsequently admitted your culpability. You probably won't do jail time after your trial, but you will be fined. The last fine for such vandalism I remember was in excess of a thousand dollars.'

'That hardly sounds high enough in my opinion,' said Mayor Blake. 'But I suppose it will do. I guess you'll be working hard to pay it off, Todd. Let's go, Martha.'

'Mom? Dad? You're not going to leave me here overnight, are you?'

'We certainly are, dear,' said Martha Blake. 'I'll drop by to see you tomorrow. Sometime. Good night.'

'But Mom!' Todd sounded really worried now, as if before he'd believed they were joking. 'This fruitcake will come around and rape me in my cell.'

'Fruitcake?' asked Mayor Blake. 'Which fruitcake is that?'

'Him!' said Todd, pointing at Hutch. 'The fairy!'

'I'm going home at five,' said Hutch. 'I'll be too busy until then.'

Hutch heard the front door slam open, and quick footsteps down the hall. His own office door opened next, entirely without ceremony, and a leather clad dynamo stormed inside.

'Hutch! Hutch! You okay?'

'I'm fine, Starsk. Why?'

'Why? Why? There's that... that shit on the side of your car. And who the fuck slashed the tires? I'm gonna rip the guy's balls off when I... Oh! I'm sorry, Mrs. Blake. Didn't see you there. What's going on?'

'That's okay, Mr. Starsky. I understand.' Mrs. Blake smiled, bravely.

'There's your culprit,' her husband added, pointing at Todd. 'Be my guest.'

'Dad!'

I warned you to quite whining. You're on your own now. See you tomorrow, when your mother and I will bring you a Care package. If you behave in the meantime.'

****************

 

'We'll let Toddy stew in his own juices for a while,' said Mayor Blake. 'Maybe after spending a night or two in jail, away from his so-called friends, he'll start to think.'

'Yes,' said Hutch. Maybe, he thought.

'You don't believe that, Hutch?' asked the Mayor. They were in the Blake family living room. Martha Blake had insisted that they come there for coffee. Hutch's car had been taken to the local auto body repair shop, and Starsky was glad he was there to drive Hutch home.

'I'm not sure what to believe, Seymour,' said Hutch. He rubbed his eyes. 'I don't know Todd. Only met him for about one minute before today. And I've never met these friends of his. I wouldn't form any judgements at all, based on that sort of evidence, even if it were up to me to form judgements.' He sighed. 'I'm sorry,' he continued. 'That sounds so cold. I don't mean it that way.'

'Of course you don't, Mr. Hutchinson,' said Martha Blake. 'I think it's very kind of you not to form judgements, considering that you're the injured party, here.'

'I'm not injured, Mrs. Blake. I'm fine. It's just a car.'

'Just your car,' Starsky muttered, darkly.

'It's a threat, Mr. Hutchinson. I take that very seriously. We both do.'

'Thank you, Mrs. Blake. And please. Call me Hutch.'

'I will, if you call me Martha.'

Hutch smiled. It was like the sun coming out from behind the clouds. 'I'll do that,' he said.

Martha Blake looked flustered. 'I'll go check on the coffee,' she said, and escaped to the kitchen.

'Flirt,' whispered Starsky.

'Todd isn't a bad kid,' said Seymour Blake. 'Or he wasn't until recently. And he's never been in serious trouble before now. I tried to be strict with him, without being a martinet. To take an interest in his life, without being overwhelming. To let him grow and develop on his own, without spoiling him.'

'Seymour. Sometimes it isn't the parents' fault. There are other influences in children's lives.'

'But the parents are the most important, aren't they? The Bible says, bring up a child in the way he should grow -- or something like that -- and he won't depart from it.'

'Lots of kids depart from it, Mr. Blake,' said Starsky. 'I'm a cop, and my brother is, well, a bit of a hoodlum, to be honest. We both had the same parents.'

Hutch smiled at Starsky. 'My parents were devout liberals,' he contributed. 'My brother is, to say the least, a bit of a right-wing....' he was about to say nut case, but decided against it. 'He's right wing,' he finished, simply. 'Unlike the rest of my family.'

'Did he ever get into trouble?' asked the mayor.

'A bit,' Hutch conceded. He thought about telling Bobbie's story, and decided that would hardly be comforting to the mayor at the moment. Some other time, perhaps.

Martha came out with the coffee, and a plate of cookies. Starsky gave Hutch a look out of the corner of his eye, and grinned, before taking a cookie.

'I'm thinking we should look into these friends Todd was talking about, Hutch,' Martha offered.

'They might bear investigating,' Starsky agreed. 'They sound dangerous. I'm not kidding, Hutch. Vandalism. Graffiti. Doesn't sound like much, compared to other stuff we've seen over the years. Just because some kid writes Kill All Fags on somebody's car, that doesn't mean he'll do it, that's true. But....'

'But Todd seemed to be suggesting he might actually do it, Mr. Starsky. I know, and it scares me too.'

'Call me David, Mrs. Blake.'

'If you call me....'

'Martha!'

'Right!'

They all laughed.

 

*****************************

 

Todd Blake didn't look up, as Hutch spoke to him.

'Todd? Your parents asked me to say they'll be in to see you in the morning. Get some sleep. I'm going home now.' Hutch shrugged, and went to pick up his papers from his office.

Starsky was waiting outside the door. He nodded toward the cells. 'Mind if I have a word with him? Just a word, that's all.'

'Sure,' said Hutch. 'But we don't have any rubber hoses stored in there.'

'Too bad,' said Starsky. He watched Hutch stride away to his office, before entering the lock-up area. He banged on Todd's cell bars, and the kid jumped.

'You again,' said Todd.

'Yeah. Me again.'

'You touch me, and my Dad....'

'Your daddy told me I could beat the stuffing out of you, with his blessing,' said Starsky. 'Weren't you listening? But that's not what I'm here for. Not yet, anyway.'

'What are you here for?' asked Todd. 'Want a piece of my ass, homo?'

'I'm here to tell you to stay away from Chief Hutchinson. Touch anything that belongs to him, and I'll smell your stink on it, and come after you. And it won't be for a piece of your scrawny little ass. Got that?'

'Yeah, sure,' sneered the kid. 'You don't impress me, homo.'

Starsky smiled, and the kid backed up against the far wall of his cell. 'I'm sure I don't impress you, Todd,' Starsky said, softly. 'You don't know me yet. But you will. You'll learn to know me. A whole Hell of a lot better than you want to know me. Stay away from Chief Hutchinson, or you'll be having nightmares about me for years. Nighty night, Todd. And be sure to say your prayers.'

He closed the door to the lockup very slowly and quietly.

Hutch was waiting just down the hall, studiously avoiding the appearance that he might have been spying on their conversation. 'Finished?' he asked, casually.

'For now.'

'I don't know how much good threats will do, Starsk.'

'How do you know I was threatening him?'

Hutch looked amused. 'How do I know the sun's gonna rise in the morning?' he asked in turn.

'You saying I'm predictable?'

'Boringly so,' said Hutch. But he smiled. A loving smile.

Starsky glanced around. There was no one to see, so he shoved Hutch up against the wall, and kissed him thoroughly, like he deserved.

*****************

'That is just disgusting, Ken,' said Judith. 'It's such a beautiful car.'

'It's in the repair shop. No permanent damage done. And it's just a car, like I keep telling everyone.'

'And I keep telling you it's a threat, Hutch. And I take it seriously. Specially when it's a threat to us.' Starsky sat down onthe arm of his chair, and rubbed his thigh. Comforting, not in any provocative way. As always, the love was more arousing than any amount of provocation.

'I take threats seriously too, Starsky. But I'm not sure how seriously Todd meant it. He did it on a dare, to impress his friends. That doesn't mean he's gonna murder me in my bed.'

'Not with me there beside you.'

'No. Exactly. Despite the fact I'm such a weak, helpless....'

Starsky was over the arm of the chair and in his lap, before Hutch could finish his sentence. And it was difficult to talk, with Starsky's mouth on his. 'That's not what I meant, you jerk, and you know it,' said Starsky, when he was quite finished. 'Course you're not helpless.' Starsky took Hutch's right hand, his gun hand, in his own, and studied the pattern of calluses, the tiny scars around the knuckles. 'What I'm saying is that I'll watch your back, while you sleep. That's what I'm there for. Remember?'

'Is that what you're there for?' asked Hutch.

'Among other things,' said Starsky.

'Well, I'm sure I'll survive. I agree that it's a good idea to look into Todd's friends, but let's not turn them into the Hitler Youth. A gang of homophobic punks, out to prove their masculinity can be dangerous, but I'm not some kid out cruising the parks after dark. I'm a cop, a grown man, and on my guard. You seem worried though, Judy.'

'Worried? No. This just brings back bad memories,' said Judy.

'Yeah, it does. But in a way, it's giving me some perspective. I feel sorry for Martha and Seymour. When Bobbie and his friends... well, all I could see was that Mom and Dad were on their side, against me and Alan, even though they didn't know. Didn't mean it that way. Now that I'm older, I can see it from their side. And it's a rough side. Having a kid in trouble. Having the law take over. Feeling guilty and helpless. I want to help them.'

'Getting Todd away from these friends will help,' said Starsky. 'Then, we can start making this place a better place to live, like the mayor wants.'

'Well, I'm sure if anyone can, you guys can,' said Judy. 'I'm sure by the time the baby is born, Port Justine will be back on the right track.'

'I hope so,' said Hutch. 'But you know, it's a little scary, the idea of having a kid, isn't it? I mean, look at what happened with Bobbie. And now, Todd. They both had parents who tried their best to raise them properly....'

'Like my Mom did with Nick,' said Starsky.

'Yeah, and they all....'

'... decided a life of crime suited them better,' finished Starsky.

'So what do you do?' asked Hutch.

'I guess we'll do our best,' said Judith. 'Like all parents. What choice do we have? We just have to have faith. And I'm sure with two fathers like you around....'

'Um, Jude?' asked Hutch.

'Yes, Kenny,' said Judith.

'You trying to tell us something?' asked Hutch.

'Yes, Kenny,' said Judith.

'Like what?' asked Hutch.

'Men,' said Judith. 'Didn't Dad ever tell you about the birds and the bees?'

'Yeah, but I didn't believe a word of it,' said Hutch. 'You telling me it's all true. It really works?'

'Apparently,' said Judith.

'What works?' Starsky managed to gasp.

'Your dick,' said Hutch. 'Apparently.'

'My... my....'

'David, dear,' said Judith. 'I apologize. This isn't exactly the way  
I wanted to tell you. I understand that the woman should inform the  
actual, biological father of her baby first, if he's at all available,  
before telling other people. But it's difficult to pry you guys apart,  
at the best of times.'

'We... we....'

'Judy, I congratulate you,' said Hutch. 'You've reduced Starsky to stammering monosyllables. Even I have trouble doing that.'

'You... you....'

'Judith. Take pity on him. Put him out of his misery, please,' Hutch begged.

'Okay,' said Judith. 'I'm pregnant. I'm going to have a baby. We're going to be parents. Are you happy, David?'

'Oh, my God,' said Starsky. 'It worked.'

'Apparently,' said Hutch.

 

**********************

 

Hutch climbed out of the shower, and wrapped a towel around his waist. He wiped the steam from the bathroom mirror, and studied his reflection, critically. He was 35 years old, on his next birthday. Not old at all, he thought. But he had been feeling older than his years for some time. Tired and depressed. But not so much lately.

He thought about the astonished happiness on Starsky's face. About how Starsky and Judy had hugged and cried, and pulled him into their embrace, and made him feel as though he'd had something to do with it all, and had done a wonderful job besides. He was so happy for them both.

Was their happiness a happiness he wanted for himself? On the whole, he thought not. This was as close as he was willing to get to the entire parenthood trap. But, at the thought of a miniature version of Starsky roaming the earth, he couldn't help but feel a tiny bubble of joy forming in his chest.

The father of this miracle of genetic engineering was in their bedroom, lying on the bed staring at the ceiling.

'Um... hello. Why are you in here?'

'Um... Hutch. This is our room,' said Starsky. 'Remember? Don't you want me here?'

'Of course it is,' said Hutch. 'Of course I want you here. I just thought you were with Judy, that's all.'

'Well, I was. We had a nice talk. And then I came here to talk to you.'

'What about?' asked Hutch.

He sounded a bit worried, thought Starsky. And that was unbearable. 'Hey! C'mere,' he said. 'Get into bed where we can talk comfortably. Get rid of that damp towel. Hmm. Your hair's all wet. Let me dry it for you, a bit. There. That's better. Get under the covers. That better?'

'Yes, Mom. Gonna tell me a bed time story?'

'Yeah,' said Starsky, pulling off his clothes. 'That's what I'm gonna tell you. See, Judy and I had a little talk, and we're gonna end the intimate part of our relationship for now, since that part of our relationship has fulfilled its purpose.... Why? Why? Because the situation is potentially explosive, that's why. Because I'm in love with you, and I can't divide my heart in two, that's why. Judy and me, we care about each other. We get along fine, in every way. But we're not in love, neither of us. The thing is, the more time you spend with someone, sleep with someone, the more you get attached to them. You know?'

'Yeah,' said Hutch. 'I know.'

'So, even though we're not in love, it's dangerous. So, we're going to stay friends. That's the best way to go.'

'You said, for now,' said Hutch, after a long moment of digesting this piece of news.

'Yeah. We might decide to have another baby. Sometime. If we like the first experiment, you know?'

'Another baby?' asked Hutch. He seemed to be repeating everything Starsky was telling him, he thought. Didn't he have an original idea left in his own head?

'Another baby,' Starsky agreed. 'Maybe. In a few years. When this one is out of diapers. That's the usual way to do these things, I guess. You got any objections?'

'Nope,' said Hutch. 'Not a one.'

Starsky sighed, and settled into Hutch's arms. 'Don't worry,' he said. 'Not about the state of the world, at least. We can't do nothing about that. No one can. No one ever has been able to do anything about the state of the world. Just maybe little corners of it here or there. Yeah. There are bigots walking the earth. There always have been. We'll always meet people who hate me because I'm Jewish, as an example.'

'That's so unbelievable to me,' Hutch commented. Starsky was so warm, vital and beautiful. How could anyone hate him?

'There will always be people who hate us because we love each other,' Starsky went on. 'Or you, because you're... I don't know. Blond and beautiful?'

'Now that is ridiculous,' said Hutch. 'I'm no such thing.'

'No such... What? You're not blond?'

'Not beautiful,' said Hutch. 'That's nonsense.'

'Well, allow me to disagree,' said Starsky. 'And allow me to demonstrate.' He tossed back the covers, to reveal Hutch's naked flesh. 'I'm gonna start with this big toe,' he went on. 'Just look how beautiful it is.'

'You need glasses,' Hutch laughed.

'Get ready,' said Starsky. 'This is gonna be a long night.'

 

***To be continued. Maybe***


End file.
